Steele County, Minnesota

Early Norwegian Settlement

The first Norwegian settlers in Steele County were Borge Larsen Gjermhus from Kongsvinger and Martin Hansen from Toten. They settled in Lemond Township in 1854. 

The first settlers in other parts of the county, all of whom arrived in 1856, included Lars K. Johnson from Hardanger; Andreas Auersen from Ringerike; Ole Hoganson; Ole Johnson; John Johnson Hegg; Agrim Johnson; Johannes Nilsen; Torsten Nilsen; T. T. Nilsen; Lars Johannesen; and Mons Anderson, all from Lærdal in Sogn. These settlers, or at least most of them, came from Dane County, Wisconsin, and settled in the areas of Pratt, Bixby, and Lysne. Anfin Anfinsen Seim, Ole Anfinsen Seim, and Halvor Hougen, all from Årdal in Sogn, settled near Ellendale in Berlin Township.

Pioneer Life

The settlers first dug dugouts. Once these were completed, they began preparing the land for wheat farming, which became the settlement’s principal source of income. Red Wing, their nearest market, was approximately fifty miles away.

Ole Seim’s Recollection

Ole Seim recalled:

“In 1854, my parents and I left Bergen aboard a sailing ship bound for New York. From there, we continued by railroad, steamship, and riverboat, depending on what transportation was available. We first came to Muskego, where my mother died of cholera in the spring of 1856. We then continued west in the company of Mikkel Anderson, Ole Pedersen, Bjørgo Olson, and another Bjørgo whose first name I did not know, because we called one Big B and the other Little B. They were all from Østerdalen. When we reached La Crosse, Wisconsin, we had to wait an entire week before we could cross the Mississippi River because the number of emigrants was so great. We could not all cross at the same time. We had to wait our turn, or more precisely, our number.

The men from Østerdalen who traveled with us settled in Otisco, Waseca County. They later moved to the Red River Valley. My father and I, together with Halvor Hougen, settled in Berlin Township in Steele County. The oxen and wagons that had brought us all the way from the southeastern corner of Wisconsin were used for a long time afterward as well. During the first years, the Winnebago Indians were our nearest neighbors.”

Churches and Congregations

The Beaver Lake Congregation at Ellendale was established in 1858 by Pastor Nils Olsen and was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. Pastor Olsen served the congregation until his death in 1885. He belonged to the Augustana Synod. By about 1907, Steele County had eight Norwegian congregations and seven churches. Five congregations belonged to the United Church, two to the Lutheran Free Church, and one to the Baptist Church.

Public Office

J. L. Johnson of Lysne was the first Norwegian to hold public office in the county. He was elected County Commissioner in 1890.

Norwegian Place Names

Lysne Post Office, mentioned above, was the only place in Steele County with a Norwegian name.

Sources:

[Ulvestad, Martin. Nordmændene i Amerika. Utg. History Book Company's Forlag. Minneapolis, Minn. 1907.]